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Mash / Lauter Process

Hello!

I have been a silent member for about the past 4 years. I have used this forum extensively and have typically found direction, insight, opinions and answers to just about everything I have queried. Thank you all for that!

I have designed, engineered, built and installed a new nano 2.5 BBL system that I am now preparing for our first batch.

We have a separate mash tun and lauter tun that was initially designed for multiple back-to-back batches, but we will be brewing single batches for some time using the mash tun as an MLT. We do have a VFD driven mash mixer on a center shaft and impeller and an interchangeable lauter rake. I have gathered enough information here to disregard the use of the rake at this time, but I would like to use the mixer when applicable.

I am asking that you review our step-by-step process described below that I have developed from various posts specifically regarding mashing / lautering procedures for a single infusing mash using a combined mash / lauter tun on a small system and comment accordingly.

I know that there is a broad range of knowledge and experience here, and I certainly would appreciate your time and consideration.

Saccharification rest
- Specified period of time at a specified temperature
- Mash heated by immersion coil in mash tun
- Temperature controlled heated water pumped through coil

Mash-out
- Mash temperature is increased
- Mash heated by immersion coil in mash tun
- Specified period of time at a specified temperature

Recirculation
- Wort removed from bottom and returned to the top to facilitate clarification
- Mash tun false bottom in place
- Gravity fed to grant and pumped from grant back into mash tun
- Short brewery hose lengths to reduce heat loss
- Recirculation arm splash prohibitor sits just under grain bed
- Mash heated by immersion coil in mash tun

I have a couple comments. I don't think you'll need to heat the mash during the sacc rest; even at 2.5 bbls. I'm assuming your MLT is not insulated, but even so, that's a lot of thermal mass. Similarly, vorlauf shouldn't take long, so no need to heat the mash there either. For mashout, I guess you can use your immersion coil, but have you tested this out? I'm betting it will take quite a while to get from ~150 to ~170. As you scale up in size, directly heating the mash becomes impractical. You'll have to beat the hell out of the mash stirring it. I don't have data, but I'm guessing that most breweries in your size range either don't mash out like that, or they use a hot water addition to do it.